


The Ways of the Warrior

by UnloxTheBox



Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Airbending & Airbenders, Bending (Avatar), Earthbending & Earthbenders, Firebending & Firebenders, Gen, Non Benders (Avatar), Waterbending & Waterbenders
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-05
Updated: 2020-09-06
Packaged: 2021-03-07 01:47:15
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,255
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26308798
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/UnloxTheBox/pseuds/UnloxTheBox
Summary: There are as many ways to be a warrior as there are people in this world. Team Avatar knows this better than anyone, and now they want to give their knowledge to a very special person: you. This is your chance to learn from the masters, our favorite benders and non-benders alike. What are you waiting for? You already know the order...*cue intro music*
Kudos: 4
Collections: Avatar: The Last Airbender





	The Ways of the Warrior

_Do you believe that you can walk on water? Do you believe that you can win this fight tonight?_

_-Thirty Seconds to Mars, Walk on Water_

* * *

_Your teacher makes her way over, each step both purposeful and elegant. The still surface of the pond rises up in perfect synchronous grace with her rhythm, and a faint trail of expanding circles marks her passage._

_As she gets closer, you take in the blue dress, its fabric just a touch darker than the sky, set against warm brown skin. She seems so young to have accomplished everything she has. Once the proper distance has been met, you fold into a deep bow. There is so much to ask, so much to learn, and you cannot wait._

How does it feel to bend water?

_She smiles, the corner of her mouth curving ever so gently upwards._

No one’s ever asked me that before. But I think you should experience it first, before I give my answer.

First, close your eyes. There is a shallow bowl of water in front of you, sitting in a hollow of grass. You saw it before, right? Remember the wooden instrument and the clear water it carries. Stretch out your fingertips above it until they reach the center of the bowl. Keep your eyes closed; I want you to _feel_ where the water is.

Think of it as a liquid fabric, woven from tiny silver threads invisible to the eye. The threads form a pattern, one that must follow certain rules but can also be bent and reshaped. There’s a polarity, a directionality of the components. But water is the element of change, and you have that power as well.

Actually, don’t think of it as power. It’s more like… potential. Water is the source, and you can only take on its strength by _knowing_ it. Respecting this small bolt of liquid cloth as much as you would the endless tapestry of the everchanging sea. You have to listen to understand, and you have to understand to respect.

Now, reach out again, this time with your hands _and_ your mind. See the pattern in your mind’s eye. See it changing, flowing from one shape to the next. Ask it gently, wrap your question around its form. Offer a suggestion. Think of one word –up.

Draw your hand higher, and let the water follow. You’re not forcing it, so relax your body. Roll your shoulders back, smooth out your brow. Breathe in, deeply. Remember, you’re only guiding.

Okay, now open your eyes and take a look. See how you’ve stretched the water up from the center of the bowl? A wave, like the shape of a handful of sand in the instant it falls back to the earth. Don’t worry if it falls on your first few tries. Let’s draw it up again.

When you have the water here, you begin to feel its pulse and rhythms, just as you feel the blood that runs through your veins.

What? No, you are not ready for that yet. Bloodbending is a dangerous art, and not one to speak of lightly.

Focus.

Okay, good. Now, continue to draw it into a sphere. Yes, that’s beautiful. Do you see how amazing a thing you’ve created? Look into the orb, and you can see both the shifting threads and the world beyond, all the trees and grass different from what you saw before. It’s like a new way of seeing. Don’t get too close though, or you’ll burst it!

That’s it. It feels easier now, doesn’t it? But keep those shoulders relaxed. Now, let’s see if you can make it spiral.

Oh, but you do know how. Remember the pattern. All those threads are already moving, they always are. You just need to coax them into a certain path. I think of it like herding a group of fast-running lion-horses, of a flock of turtle-sparrows in flight. Each individual part is in motion, both on its own and in response to those around it. If you guide those at the front and edges, if you lead them, the rest will follow.

Hey, there you go! As the water spins faster, it gets more excited. Now, let’s try and redirect that energy outwards, and learn something more… applicable. How about that spot there, right in front of you. Keep it spinning for now, I’m going to demonstrate first.

What you’re going to do, once you feel the momentum of the water, is extend your arms out. One swift motion, palms face the direction you want the water to travel. In the same moment, and this is essential, you have to both push the water _and_ let it go. Do you understand why?

Good, now give it a try.

Oh come on, it wasn’t _that_ bad. Trust me, I know. And this is a great chance to practice drawing the water back. I want you to call out to it. Water can adapt to wherever it travels, but it does enjoy being played with, transformed, reformed.

I know it can be hard. Your call has to be strong enough. You can’t yell though, it won’t listen if you do. It’s simpler than that, but being simple doesn’t mean it’s easy. All you need is to sit here, and be attractive.

Hm, I didn’t mean for it to come out like that. I just meant, you want to draw towards you. Water wants to go where other water already is. If you _are_ water, you can call to it more easily. Does that make sense?

Yes, that’s it. Just let it flow –oh!

_She chuckles at your long-suffering expression as water continues to drip down your chin and onto your sopping wet clothes._

Okay, I guess the call was a little too loud there. Don’t worry, it happens to the best of us. If you play with water, eventually you’re going to get wet.

Maybe a little gentler this time. It’s perfectly fine to go slow –I certainly started off very, very slow. It usually takes a while to get sharper with it. Unless you’re the Avatar, but that’s a story for another time.

Try again? Of course you can! That’s what this is all about, after all. Hold the water there for a minute, watch it flow and feel in your body how to channel that flow. Try to figure out what went wrong last time.

Yes, I think so too. This time, try exhaling as you push the water away. Remember, it’s a two part process. Push, then breathe. Press, and release.

Yes! That was amazing! Did you feel it, that rising inside you, the swell into a rolling crest and then the breaking of the wave? I couldn’t agree more, it really is the best feeling in the world. Let’s keep on working on this for today, and tomorrow we’ll look at some state changes.

You asked me earlier how it feels. For me, it’s like dancing. When I waterbend, I feel so free. I don’t care what anyone else thinks, or how the world might see me. All I care about is the water, and the movement, and the rhythms of the song. I fall into a deeper level of myself, something below the surface. When I am with the water… I feel strong.

It’s different for everyone, of course. And you, my friend, are well on your way to finding that meaning out for yourself. I’m so proud of what you’ve done today.

Until next time!

**Author's Note:**

> Woo, you just got a waterbending lesson! Completely free of course, but reviews are appreciated :)  
> Next up, your friendly neighborhood firebender...


End file.
